EMIRATES’ new services from Dubai to Geneva (launched in June), Copenhagen (launched on August 1) and St Petersburg (starting November 1) are expected to snare even more of the Indonesian economy and premium outbound market to Europe.

Mohammad Al-Nahari, Emirates country manager for Indonesia, said: “The new services follow higher demand, not just from business travellers but also leisure travellers, and will boost the number of Indonesians travelling to these destinations and vice-versa.”

Al-Nahari added that the new Copenhagen services would serve as a gateway to Scandinavian destinations. “The route is already proving popular, demonstrated by the number of passengers from Jakarta booked on the first week of flights,” he said.

Al-Nahari said Emirates started to see significant growth from the longhaul corporate outbound market after introducing twice-daily direct Jakarta-Dubai flights in March last year.

Emirates sales manager Indonesia, Ilonka Leiwakabessy, said: “With our aircraft capacity between 385 and 400 seats in two classes, our average load factor is between 75 per cent and 85 per cent, or about 800 passengers a day.”

Leiwakabessy said Indonesia’s growing premium-class market, especially from the corporate sector, had boosted Emirates’ business-class load factor by between 75 and 100 per cent compared to 2010.

Asked if there were plans to increase capacity or introduce three-class configuration services from Jakarta, Al-Nahari said the airline would first concentrate on maximising available services.